How to Substitute Corn Syrup for Molasses

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Things You'll Need

  • Measuring cup

  • Brown sugar (optional)

Corn syrup and molasses taste dramatically different. Corn syrup offers very little flavor of its own other than a cloying sweetness when consumed alone. Molasses, on the other hand, offers a rich — and in some cases almost bitter — flavor in addition to its intense sweetness. Despite this difference, you can substitute corn syrup for molasses in your recipes. Use dark corn syrup if possible, as it has a faint molasses flavor and can have less impact on the final taste of the recipe. If necessary, or if you want to avoid the flavor of molasses entirely, use light corn syrup.

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Step 1

Measure out an amount of corn syrup equal to the amount of molasses in the recipe. For example, if a recipe calls for 1 1/2 cups of molasses, measure out 1 1/2 cups of corn syrup.

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Step 2

Add the corn syrup to the recipe in the same way as you would have added the molasses. There is no need to treat the corn syrup differently than molasses when making the recipe.

Step 3

Substitute some or all of the white sugar (if any) in the recipe with an equal amount of brown sugar if you wish to help maintain the molasses flavor. Brown sugar is white sugar with molasses added, so using brown sugar instead of white will add back the flavor of molasses to the recipe. Leave out 2 to 3 tbsp. of liquid per cup of white sugar that you replace with brown sugar, as brown sugar already contains extra moisture.

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